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A new adventure/experiment: Custom Hardtail Frame!


gotdurt

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1 hour ago, mack_turtle said:

ugh, that's disappointing. I can't believe that there was never a follow up. if I take that risk, I'll be bikeless for the long term. I'll just stick with what I have.

Have you looked into an RSD Middlechild? Cromoly and Ti options available. $749 for the RS 291 frame in chromoly.

https://rsdbikes.com/rs291-chromoly/

Edited by Chief
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2 minutes ago, Chief said:

Have you looked into an RSD Middlechild? Cromoly and Ti options available.

https://rsdbikes.com/rs291-chromoly/

I have a long list and RSD is not on it because I don't need anything with a fork that long. putting a shorter fork on it would do some whacky things to to geo. It's just a ginormous bike.

trust me, I've looked at everything under the sun and I can't settle on something I like. it's neurotic and I probably should not have brought it up.

Edited by mack_turtle
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A 140 fork would steepen the SA and HA by .5*. That would put the SA at 75.8 and HA at 64*.  I know it would drop the BB height but probably only a couple MM. Sounds like pretty decent geo for here and other places as well.

Edited by Chief
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15 minutes ago, Chief said:

150 too long?

I have zero interest in anything longer than 120. a 490 or so rigid fork would work just fine for me as well. personal experience tells me that I'm not going to ride anything where I would "need" more travel than that and the weight and movement is a liability at that point. I ran the numbers and a Middlechild with a fork that I'd want would have the BB dangerously close to the ground and the seatpost at flagpole steep.

Edited by mack_turtle
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here's the custom bike I am sitting on right now. it's basically a steel Specialised Fuse, medium size. all the dimensions are a nod to modern trends, but not extreme: longer reach than an XC bike so I can use a short stem, mid-travel fork 120-130mm, slack-ish HTA, adjustable sliding dropouts with a range of 420-435mm so I can tension a singlespeed drivetrain and experiment if I want a longer wheelbase, short seat tube so I can use a long dropper post, low stack. subdued teal pain with bright blue.

2123509375_Marinoframe.thumb.png.c0e7291c4be920e44aa3fb0e8c51e1f8.png

for another $150, I can get a matching steel fork

584266502_Marinofork.thumb.png.f2b8cb8449f094c67eb9b0b7f26d9cf6.png

 

A friend has been considering building a backpacking-type bike from them, so if we do this, we'll ship two frames together for $150 instead of one frame for $110.

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Marino has tons and tons of bikes in the wild, and while communication is not perfect, it sounds like everyone gets their bike eventually. I'll wait to hear if they ever get back to @gotdurt before i put any money down, but I'm designing something in the meanwhile. It's that or just keep riding the old bike until I break it, which is unlikely.

Is it possible that they've just had the frame all this time and were waiting for you? It sounds like they build a ton of custom bikes all the time. Bad customer service for sure, but everyone makes mistakes. Like I said, I'm waiting to hear what you find out before I proceed.

 

Edited by mack_turtle
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On 10/29/2022 at 7:38 AM, mack_turtle said:

here's the custom bike I am sitting on right now. it's basically a steel Specialised Fuse, medium size. all the dimensions are a nod to modern trends, but not extreme: longer reach than an XC bike so I can use a short stem, mid-travel fork 120-130mm, slack-ish HTA, adjustable sliding dropouts with a range of 420-435mm so I can tension a singlespeed drivetrain and experiment if I want a longer wheelbase, short seat tube so I can use a long dropper post, low stack. subdued teal pain with bright blue.

2123509375_Marinoframe.thumb.png.c0e7291c4be920e44aa3fb0e8c51e1f8.png

for another $150, I can get a matching steel fork

584266502_Marinofork.thumb.png.f2b8cb8449f094c67eb9b0b7f26d9cf6.png

 

A friend has been considering building a backpacking-type bike from them, so if we do this, we'll ship two frames together for $150 instead of one frame for $110.

I’m experimenting with a bikes direct rigid single speed 27.5 plus bike. The numbers are close to what you’re looking for 67.5 ha 73 seat 430 reach 435 cs. I installed 3.0 knards tubeless a short stem and I think I’m now sold on rigid plus 27.5 now! 

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On 10/29/2022 at 7:38 AM, mack_turtle said:

here's the custom bike I am sitting on right now. it's basically a steel Specialised Fuse, medium size. all the dimensions are a nod to modern trends, but not extreme: longer reach than an XC bike so I can use a short stem, mid-travel fork 120-130mm, slack-ish HTA, adjustable sliding dropouts with a range of 420-435mm so I can tension a singlespeed drivetrain and experiment if I want a longer wheelbase, short seat tube so I can use a long dropper post, low stack. subdued teal pain with bright blue.

2123509375_Marinoframe.thumb.png.c0e7291c4be920e44aa3fb0e8c51e1f8.png

The BB is a tad on the high side IMHO.  Not overly so, but the BB drop could be lower without much risk of crank strikes.

Just my thoughts after a quick glance.

-CJB

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Noted, @CBaron. I kind of like my BB to not be too low as I like that nimble bmx feel. That be 65mm drop that is so in right now just feels deep. I'm trying to adapt to lower though. I noticed that the Chumba Sendero has a high bottom bracket, probably for handling purposes less than rock strikes.

 

Here's a drawing I made of what I might look like. adding in the details of a suspension fork was cumbersome, so I drew it with a rigid fork for simplicity. 

1198699914_ScreenShot2022-11-01at8_33_17AM.thumb.png.b785e6776cc562df824323257e85651c.png

There are "sagged" numbers for a 120mm 29er fork.

I'm still on the fence. on one hand, I can get a unique custom bike for very cheap. I'll probably have to wait a long time for it and there's a possibility that I've designed a monster that I won't like or they might make a mistake. I could also buy a Esker Hayduke or Santa Cruz Chameleon for about 2x the cost, but I can afford it. not the "perfect" custom bike, but something designed well and with stateside support.

Edited by mack_turtle
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In my opinion, the 55-65mm drop range can be pretty acceptable for most riding.  At TF, we primarily built with 60mm of drop.  I really didn't want to be in the pedal strike range so we'd rarely go under 65.  This was a good few years ago when basic tires were 2.3 max and cranks were almost always 175mm.

Cheers,
CJB

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23 hours ago, mack_turtle said:

Noted, @CBaron. I kind of like my BB to not be too low as I like that nimble bmx feel. That be 65mm drop that is so in right now just feels deep. I'm trying to adapt to lower though. I noticed that the Chumba Sendero has a high bottom bracket, probably for handling purposes less than rock strikes.

 

Here's a drawing I made of what I might look like. adding in the details of a suspension fork was cumbersome, so I drew it with a rigid fork for simplicity. 

1198699914_ScreenShot2022-11-01at8_33_17AM.thumb.png.b785e6776cc562df824323257e85651c.png

There are "sagged" numbers for a 120mm 29er fork.

I'm still on the fence. on one hand, I can get a unique custom bike for very cheap. I'll probably have to wait a long time for it and there's a possibility that I've designed a monster that I won't like or they might make a mistake. I could also buy an Esker Hayduke or Santa Cruz Chameleon for about 2x the cost, but I can afford it. not the "perfect" custom bike, but something designed well and with stateside support.

maybe it’s as simple as trying out a larger karate monkey frame?

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51 minutes ago, RonSurly said:

maybe it’s as simple as trying out a larger karate monkey frame?

the seat tube angle on that design is so slack that I would not be able to ride it sitting down. also, standover clearance that I need to not smash myself completely disappears on the large size. Surly designed that bike to fit correctly—with a "long" stem and tight handling with a super-short wheelbase. I don't have any trouble controlling it, but it's not inspiring at speed.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Sorry, I don't recall seeing the notifications from these last posts...

On 10/29/2022 at 12:56 PM, mack_turtle said:

Marino has tons and tons of bikes in the wild, and while communication is not perfect, it sounds like everyone gets their bike eventually. I'll wait to hear if they ever get back to @gotdurt before i put any money down, but I'm designing something in the meanwhile. It's that or just keep riding the old bike until I break it, which is unlikely.

Is it possible that they've just had the frame all this time and were waiting for you? It sounds like they build a ton of custom bikes all the time. Bad customer service for sure, but everyone makes mistakes. Like I said, I'm waiting to hear what you find out before I proceed.

 

Yep, they even sent me photos of it... then COVID hit and excuses flew, although they did send another photo or 2 a few months later, then Elijah responded to a few of my emails saying that it was almost ready and they they were waiting on input from me (none asked, it was a stall tactic). Then, ghost. He may have just "reset" after COVID and didn't want to spend the money on shipping the replacement frame... I mean, it's been 3 years now. The last time I emailed them I even gave them the option of not painting it, just send it as-is.
Edit: I sent another email today with a link to this thread to see if I get a response. Maybe I'll just email them daily until they respond.

Edited by gotdurt
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On 11/22/2022 at 12:21 PM, cutter said:

Related note:  I sent this thread to Myles so he could chime in directly.  I thought he was already on here but apparently not.  He said he tried to sign up for the forum a few weeks back and has yet to hear back.  Anyone know how to get him approved?

Try sending a message to Albert.

I may be interested in a frame as well. B.

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